Non-Legal Ceremony in Foreign Country??

[Fiance Journey 1]

If the ceremony is really important, then just make sure there are no pictures on Facebook etc. When asked if you are married, the answer is no because you legally didn't get married. You are walking a fine line, just realize that if they even have a doubt, if you are married or not, you will have problems.

thanks dmck, I am not going to risk anything and these are the responses I expected. Was strange though when I read somewhere it was ok as if they new directly.

[baron555 934]

This is for cultural and religious reasons

Be very careful.....religious ceremonies may be construed by the Embassy as being legit. Be very careful.

.and of course they very much want to see her have this ceremony since most cannot travel to the US.

Yes, but you could blow the whole deal. If it's so important, then just get married there and file for the CR-1.

There have seen many opinions out there where they believe USCIS will consider that fraud for having any indication or representation of marriage outside the US and/or before the K-1 has been issued. And that it could delay and/or highly jeopardize the K-1 acceptance.

WE have seen it many times where this has blown up in the couple faces.

Also, out there are opinions that if its just a ceremony and is not considered legal in the foreign country,

But it may be considered legal in the US and by the Embassy. Be very careful.

that it is not a problem with USCIS. I would think this would be directly stated on their site, but its not (unless I have missed it after hours and hours of reading).

Nope it's not. This is an Embassy issue, not a USCIS issue. Emailing the Embassy may yield an opinion....but all is subject to the trained discretion of the Embassy CO.

Her and I would love to have a ceremony with her friends and family on the beach during these long months of waiting. Being apart is really hard.

You can have a party on the beach....stop calling it a ceremony....unless it really is one?

This would satisfy their cultural concerns and allow me to actually stay at her house when I visit monthly

Knowing the religion in Mexico, I fear this "ceremony" would be construed as a binding type; which my intuition says its a marriage to the Embassy.

...saving me money on hotels (I'm already paying for flights and other things while I'm there) and of course allowing me to enjoy the comfort of staying with her without her family becoming upset with us.

Plan on spending the money or just get married there and file for CR-1.

USCIS at the VSC received our I-129F on January 15, 2013.

thanks in advance!!!

[CaroSL 68]

I agree and that has been my response to them but I wanted to fish around in these forums with my questions rather than just read thanks!! I think my original decision stands.

[Fiance Journey 1]

I'd play safe and have no wedding, even traditional and not legal before getting the k-1.

Think of this: The interview is stressful, even if you don't have anything to hide, even when your case is easy AND your embassy is easy. If you (or your fiancé, I don't know if you are the USC or not) have to be careful not to display some information, you'd be even more stressed. They will ask you questions like "when do you plan to get married? Where? Is your familly going to attend?" They will expect details, signs you are not lying. If they have doubts, they will ask more questions. If they think you are lying or hiding something, you'll have problems. Don't put yourself, or your fiancé, in a difficult situation.

Rules vary from countries to countries, on how you can get married, what is a 'legal mariage' or not, etc.To give you an exemple, in france, you can't have a wedding ceremony (at church or wherever, even non-religious ceremony) if you don't go the the cityhall to get married first. So it they see a ceremony, they will assume you are married legally too. And as in the US, you don't need an "official setting" (such as courthouse, cityhall etc) to get married, they also can assume that as soon as you had a ceremony, you really legally got married. They won't check it up, they will just stop there.

I agree...and good point. Its an interview and its their sole discretion on the decision..facts or not. Are you of moral character to receive this privilage of a K-1 is the decision they are looking for..period..all up to their feelings of the interview. Follow their requirements to the T and youre good.

[Fiance Journey 1]

I had troubles with both my (to be) family in law and my own family, to explain them we did things the way we could, and would be more convinient for us, because we don't have a "normal" situation. We have constraints that most couples don't have. It bugs them, honestly, it kinds of bugs us too, but this doesn't matter and is not really important.

What is important is that we will be together, we will get married, we will spend the rest of our life together. This is a commitment, and this is love, and details don't matter.

We'll get married in court with just my in-laws... then have a ceremony later. Not exactly a dream. But legal, and safe, and good for us

Well said!

[Fiance Journey 1]

I think it would pretty selfish of the family to ignore your reasons for not wanting to take a risk and have this "non-legal" ceremony. This is your life, and your marriage, its a terrible thing when people try to guilt you as a means of manipulation to get what they want. Did you explain to them why this isn't a normal marriage and it can't be gone about as such ? I have a hard time imagining they would still insist on their way. But even if they do, who cares ? They're not the ones who will suffer the consequence. Apologies if I sound harsh, I just feel very strong about my independence, individuality, and my right to do as I please with my life.

Yep, they understand after I gave them a direct statement that it cant happen and it wont happen and is out of our control..so they dont say anything any longer except the every now and then comment to be smart about it/mostly funny (i have a sense of humor and have no problems with that)...but i know they'd prefer it happen if possible...so i wanted to ask since I recently read that somewhere that its "OK"..

[Fiance Journey 1]

great break down baron555. I think everything you said is how i interpreted it from the beginning and is my philosophy on almost anything legal..why seem fishy, causing them to wonder and attempt to catch something wrong...thats their job. In the end we will come back after the wedding in the US and have something on the beach..

[Fiance Journey 1]

thanks all!

wish the USCIS process was faster... But who doesnt, including the USCIS who probably are short handed

[UK-USA-K1 128]

If the ceremony there is THAT important to the family, have you considered actually making it legal and then filing for a spousal visa (I-130) Instead of a fiance visa (I-129F)? This takes a little longer to process, but then the family would be happy and you'd still be keeping everything legal. Just a thought you may wish to consider if you haven't already

[Punit and Dhruvi 6]

Good question, I too had a question about this. I recently went to India for a huge engagment ceremony where my fiancee and I exchange rings in front of her family and my family and family friends and all. It was about 200 people present. Now our weddings are different from Christian wedding, and I wanted my fiancee to take some of our engagement pictures to the interview for further confirmation and our engagement album. Now would this also cause and issue when she goes for an Interview. I know this would be specific to the Indians in the forum who have gone through this or anyone with any insight.

[AKSinghSingh79 143]

Good question, I too had a question about this. I recently went to India for a huge engagment ceremony where my fiancee and I exchange rings in front of her family and my family and family friends and all. It was about 200 people present. Now our weddings are different from Christian wedding, and I wanted my fiancee to take some of our engagement pictures to the interview for further confirmation and our engagement album. Now would this also cause and issue when she goes for an Interview. I know this would be specific to the Indians in the forum who have gone through this or anyone with any insight.

Your situation is different as elaborate engagement ceremonies are common in India. However it is not uncommon to be hassled by the consulate officer during the interview regarding your engagement. Have your fiancee gather affidavits from family and friends who attended the engagement. Oftentimes they also ask for a guest list along with phone numbers of the guests. Most importantly, have your fiancee stress during the interview that this was an engagement ceremony. They may try to trip her up and refer to you as "husband" or reference your "wedding". Make sure she is prepared for this level of questioning. Is your relationship arranged or love? For K-1 applicants, I have also seen requests for proof of plans for your future wedding in the U.S. including receipts for venues, catering, etc.... Also, the CO will probably ask why you are choosing to get married in the U.S. versus India especially if your fiancee's or both of your families still reside in India.

You should re-post this question in the India sub-forum in order to gain more helpful insight on engagement ceremonies when applying for a K-1. I am no expert in engagement ceremonies since my husband is from a part of India where engagement ceremonies aren't very common.

[Grant PDX 183]

The individual CO who reviews the case has very wide discretion to make a decision. If they feel a marriage ceremony happened they will deny the case. If they don't, and everything else is in line, then it wouldn't be a problem. Whatever that CO reviewing your case feels is the real key. Nobody can tell you what they will feel at that time.

What you need to be careful of is giving them any indication that a wedding ceremony happened. Have a "party on the beach" by all means. In fact, have an engagement party if you feel the need. But if the person reviewing your case has reason to believe it was a wedding, then you are in a pickle.

I had an engagement party with my fiancee. I anticipate that the CO interviewing my fiancee with have zero reason to believe we got married. Since you call it a ceremony in your original post, that word is obviously in your vocabulary. Get it out, of your and your fiancee's vocabulary ... P A R T Y... If you had a party to celebrate your engagement, it LIKELY won't be a big deal. Again, it's all up to one person interviewing your fiancee sometime down the road. You can choose to be extremely safe, or live in the gray area. Nobody can tell you with any surety what the CO will do, however, if they believe a wedding ceremony happened, you will almost surely be denied.

[jmay223 0]

I agree and that has been my response to them but I wanted to fish around in these forums with my questions rather than just read thanks!! I think my original decision stands.

My fiance and I were dealing with the same question, as our families (and us as well) were wanting to have a personal non-legal ceremony beforehand in his country. We made the decision as well to not risk ANY problems with the visa process, and hold off on anything that looks remotely like a wedding. We'd rather have each other

Thanks for posting this, and for these responses, nice to see decisions supported by the experts.

[Fiance Journey 1]

My fiance and I were dealing with the same question, as our families (and us as well) were wanting to have a personal non-legal ceremony beforehand in his country. We made the decision as well to not risk ANY problems with the visa process, and hold off on anything that looks remotely like a wedding. We'd rather have each other

Thanks for posting this, and for these responses, nice to see decisions supported by the experts.